United Kingdom

Last week’s “fame and shame” about the high percentage of Campylobacter-contaminated fresh chickens sold by retail stores in the United Kingdom is being followed by renewed discussions about interventions their poultry industry should try to reduce the U.K.’s most common cause of bacterial gastrointestinal disease. Those discussions, say experts, could see the UK at least… Continue Reading

The Consumers’ Association in the United Kingdom, which goes by the brand name Which?, is following up on the recent release of fresh whole chicken Campylobacter contamination rates by supermarket chain by asking chief executives what they are going to do about it. As promised, at the end of a year-long study, the UK’s Food… Continue Reading

Grocery purchases of chicken in the United Kingdom have declined nearly 7 percent by volume and 4 percent by sales since this time last year. Experts are speculating that the public has been influenced by media coverage of the high levels of Campylobacter contamination found on raw chicken, according to meatinfo.co.uk. Media coverage related to… Continue Reading

Major British retailer Marks & Spencer has introduced a plan to take on the poultry industry’s longstanding problems with illnesses related to Campylobacter, a foodborne bacterium that causes diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal pain and fever. In August, the U.K. Food Standards Agency reported that it found Campylobacter on 59 percent of fresh, whole store-bought chicken. Campylobacter… Continue Reading

Scots will continue to have an appetite for porridge and kippers after yesterday’s independence vote, but also remaining despite the outcome are Scotland’s food safety challenges. Foodborne illnesses strike about 132,000 Scots annually, sending 2,330 to hospitals and causing about 50 deaths. Who gets the bill for those damages — about 140 million British pounds… Continue Reading

An independent report suggesting that the United Kingdom needs a special food police unit uses the Danes and the Dutch as examples and not the United States, where more than a dozen food industry executives this year have been subjected to investigations resulting in felony criminal charges. Professor Chris Elliott from Queen’s University Belfast is… Continue Reading

Liquid food for premature newborns that was distributed in the United Kingdom is under an urgent recall after being linked to the death of one child and blood poisoning in 14 others, according to The Guardian. The affected formula, administered to newborns in hospitals, was delivered to 22 healthcare facilities. The 15 children suffered from… Continue Reading

Ten children with emotional and physical scars that will likely be with them for life are among those who have reached settlements following the 2009 E. coli outbreak at England’s Godstone Farm. “These children have all had painful and frightening experiences,” said London’s High Court Judge Colin Mackay. “I cannot think of anything more ghastly… Continue Reading

In June of this year, the European Union will introduce new rules for pig meat inspections designed to minimize the risk of bacterial contamination on pork. The United Kingdom’s Food Standards Agency announced last week that it is requesting comments on the practical application of changes required by the rules. These comments are being solicited… Continue Reading

Campylobacter is the pathogen making most people sick in the United Kingdom and, earlier this week, the U.K.’s Food Standards Agency (FSA) formally agreed to target the problem at its principal source: poultry production. FSA has decided to require reporting of campylobacter levels all along the supply chain, dropping regulatory barriers to the adoption of… Continue Reading